


Of Plants, Potions, and Quidditch

by HoneyBeeez



Category: Haikyuu!!, Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: First Kisses, Forbidden Forest, Friendship, GUESS WHOS BACK. BACK AGAIN. with another hp au, Halfblood!Kyoutani, Hufflepuff!Kyoutani, Hugs, M/M, One Sided Rivalry, Pureblood!Yahaba, Quidditch, Syltherin!Yahaba, Thestrals, This is a wild ride, oikawa meddles. bokuto has so many roles. iwaizumi just wants potions class to be over, to be honest this is long overdue, ushijima is a professor.... somehow
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-19
Updated: 2018-02-19
Packaged: 2019-03-21 05:47:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,068
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13734441
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HoneyBeeez/pseuds/HoneyBeeez
Summary: Yahaba Shigeru, a sixth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, usually keeps to himself, helping Professor Oikawa with extraneous Herbology tasks when he has the time, but all of that changes when he starts noticing someone, namely Kyoutani Kentarou, a Hufflepuff that has somehow wormed his way into his head (and heart).





	Of Plants, Potions, and Quidditch

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Chibs](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chibs/gifts), [fervidian87](https://archiveofourown.org/users/fervidian87/gifts).



> who knew discord would be such a good place to come up with ship ideas, amiright?  
> i havent written a HP!AU in a long time and i think my love for it shows pretty blatantly.....  
> (thank u chibs and fervidian87 for the wonderful ideas!!)
> 
> Just Some Notes:  
> -Oikawa: Herbology Professor  
> -Iwaizumi: Potions Professor  
> -Ushijima: Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor  
> -Bokuto: Care of Magical Creatures Professor, In charge of Flight Lessons, Groundskeeper
> 
> Please enjoy!!

The first time Shigeru sees _him_ is when he’s heading towards the greenhouse, hoping to talk to Professor Oikawa about a question he’s had about Herbology. It’s close to dinner, so Shigeru was planning on catching the professor as he made his way to the Great Hall, but as he nears the building, more than one voice bounces in the air.

“Really, Kyoutani, you’re _good_. The least you should do is try a little-”

“No offense, Professor, but I’d rather focus on Quidditch.”

“If you want to go into the professional leagues, then sure. But Potions and Herbology go hand-in-hand, I think you should really consider-”

“Professor?” Shigeru interrupts, peeking through the greenhouse door that’s propped open by a potted mandrake. He stoops down and feels its leaves, just a quick brush of his fingers to the waxy foliage, almost like a greeting, before flicking his eyes up to the professor and _him_.

“Ah, Yahaba,” Professor Oikawa says, flashing a smile at him. The boy with a Hufflepuff crest on his robes takes the distraction to shrug out from under the Professor’s hand on his shoulder. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”

“I just had a question about Herbology, but you seem a bit preoccu-” Shigeru starts to say, before the Hufflepuff darts to the side, picking up a tattered… Muggle backpack?

“I was just leaving,” the boy says, throwing the bag over his shoulder and practically fleeing the greenhouse. The professor groans in his wake.

“What was _that_ all about?” Shigeru says, watching the retreating figure a second more before turning back to Oikawa.

“Confidential,” the professor sings, rocking on his heels slightly. Shigeru gives him a look. “Oh, you know I can’t talk about other students to you. But it’s a good thing you’re here!” He’s pointing a finger to the sky now, like the thought just occurred to him, but knowing the professor, he was probably ruminating on the thought all day. “I need your help moving that mandrake from the doorway. She keeps setting her roots every time I try to move her, and I know you’re her favorite.”

“I’m not your errand boy, you know,” Shigeru mutters, rolling his eyes as he steps back over to the mandrake. He rubs at the leaves again, feeling the plant shudder a bit, like a strong wind rustling past it. He lets his fingers slip into the dirt, only temporarily, near the heart of the mandrake before removing them quickly and gripping at the pot’s sides. With a heave, he gathered the pot into his arms and waddled it over to the nearest workbench, ignoring the way the flimsy screen door of the greenhouse slams shut and setting the pot down gently before dusting his hands on his robes.

“I wish you were, some days,” the professor says, almost under his breath, but it’s rarely surprising anymore. “But! You said you had a question?” he asks, tilting his head to the side and letting his unruly hair fall into his eyes, covering his glasses’ lens.

“Well, more or less,” Shigeru says, shrugging. “I was going to ask about Devil’s Snare and photosynthesis, but…”

“Delving into Muggle sciences again, Yahaba?”

“Making Muggle Studies required for all Hogwarts students is the worst thing the Board has done to this school,” Shigeru huffs, folding his arms across his chest and resolutely looking anywhere but at his professor.

“I see,” Oikawa responds, inclining his chin, before smiling. “Unfortunately, that answer comes with a continuation of Muggle Studies. A seventh-year topic, I believe, focusing on the connections between their world and ours.”

“Can’t you just tell me?”

“That would be spoiling your academic endeavors which, as a professor, I aspire _not_ to do, Yahaba,” the professor gives him a pat on his shoulder, which draws him back to the Hufflepuff. Everything about that kid was _weird_. “It’s late, we should get something to eat, yes?”

“Yes Professor,” Shigeru says, his heart not completely into the affirmation as Oikawa ushers him out of the greenhouse.

Near the top of the steep, winding path that leads up to the castle, a figure, with Hufflepuff-crested robes rippling in the early autumn wind, darts out of sight.

* * *

 

The next time Shigeru sees _him_ , it’s in class. He almost confused about why he’s never noticed before, but the boy sits at the back of the Potions laboratory and keeps to himself. The only reason Shigeru notices the boy is because, on his way back from the ingredients’ cabinet, he sees the plush backpack straps peeking out from under his work bench. And he hasn’t even _moved_ to start the assignment yet.

It’s a good thing, Shigeru thinks, that he’s never noticed the Hufflepuff before, but it wasn’t like he needed to notice him _now_ , anyways. He casts _Auguamenti_ while pointing his wand into his cauldron, filling it about halfway before stopping and casting _Incendio_ to light his burner underneath. He stares at the board, where Professor Iwaizumi rewrote the instructions on how to brew the _Draught of Living Death_.

The Hufflepuff passes his bench as he _finally_ goes towards the ingredients’ cabinet, and Shigeru clenches his fist.

Shigeru brews like his life depends on it, slaving over his potion and his hair frizzing up from the steam he gets in his face from hovering so closely. He can’t help it. It needs to be _perfect_ , and he’ll have it no other way.

He’s almost mad at himself at how often the boy slips into his mind as he works. The conversation he overheard loops in his mind, even though it wasn’t much, the words mix with the number of times he stirs his potion, throwing him off a stir or two. The way the Hufflepuff snubbed Professor Oikawa, avoiding him like Shigeru nearly avoids slicing off a sizeable chunk of his finger while preparing the next ingredient. The backpack he has, slung over his shoulder then and peeking out from his desk now (Shigeru looks back just to make sure it was still protruding), so out of place but _fitting_ in a way that kind of makes his blood boil, but not in the way that his potion nearly boils over from excess heat.

When time is called and Professor Iwaizumi strolls around the laboratory, dropping young leaves into each cauldron, Shigeru is on edge. He _tried_ and he messed up _several times_ and it is all—

Iwaizumi drops a leaf into Shigeru’s cauldron. The edges of the leaf barely sizzles.

“Better luck next time, Yahaba,” Professor Iwaizumi says, giving him an apologetic smile. All Shigeru can do is nod before hanging his head.

About a minute later, the professor drops a leaf into the Hufflepuff’s cauldron. A puff of smoke plumes from the cauldron, most likely the burned remains of the leaf. Shigeru sees _red_.

“Well done, Kyoutani! Ten points to Hufflepuff!”

_This is all Kyoutani’s fault._

* * *

 

It’s not long until Shigeru starts seeing _Kyoutani_ everywhere. He has him in Defense and Care of Magical Creatures, too, and the Hufflepuff just happens to be in the library all the time too. It’s _infuriating_ that he can’t even research for his History of Magic essay without seeing that stupid Muggle bag or those stupid silver studs the Hufflepuff wears in his ears or that _stupid_ bumblebee hairstyle that makes _no sense_ —  but he bits his lip and stalks past him like he never saw him in the first place.

And if he feels eyes pinned to his back, he doesn’t let on.

* * *

 

“Alright,” Professor Ushijima calls, his voice booming over the room’s chatter without the need of a magnifying spell, “today, we’ll start practicing with nonverbal spells.” A shudder of whispers, a mix between excitement and nervousness, runs through the classroom. “Pair up with someone outside your House. One person will try to jinx the other, while the other will defend themselves, _silently_. Find your partners.”

There’s a flurry of movement and laughter as people rush to get into pairs. In the chaos, Shigeru stands still, eyes scanning the room for people who haven't found anyone either.

“Need a partner?” someone says by his side and he knows the voice before he knows who it belongs to. He turns, a smile of recognition tugging at his lips before he sees the Hufflepuff next to him.

“Yeah,” Shigeru concedes, thinking it rude to deny him but not liking it _one bit_. “You wanna jinx first?”

“I’ll defend,” Kyoutani says, shrugging, and all Shigeru can do is nod.

They find a free corner of the room and stand several feet apart, wands at the ready. They, and the rest of the class, wait for the professor’s okay. There’s a determined glint in the Hufflepuff’s eyes that makes Yahaba want to wipe the floor with him.

“Begin!”

 _Rictusempra, Locomotor Wibbly, Tarantallegra_ … Shigeru thinks the incantations _hard_ , the jinxes firing towards Kyoutani as fast as he could focus on them thoroughly enough, but the Hufflepuff deflects each one, the jets of light bouncing off his defenses before fizzling out after a short distance.

“You’re moving your lips,” Kyoutani notes, his voice just loud enough to carry over the space between them.

“Shut _up_!” Shigeru hisses, exasperated, shooting another Jelly-Legs jinx at him. He blocks it with a flick of his wand, nonchalant.

“Switch!” Professor Ushijima shouts.

“Show me whatcha got, since you _obviously_ know it all,” Shigeru says, the bitterness in the way he says it obvious. Kyoutani just raises his eyebrows at him.

“Begin!”

Shigeru barely catches the way Kyoutani’s wand points downward, leveling at his chest; there’s no sudden movement, no shift in his expression, his eyes as tired and determined as before, and all of a sudden, Shigeru is collapsed onto his knees, dissolving into hysterical laughter as invisible fingers tickle him from the inside-out.

He looks up at Kyoutani, tears burning the corners of his eyes, and tries to be angry. Kyoutani _Finites_ the jinx with a simple jerk, and Shigeru’s body sags in relief. When he looks up again, Kyoutani is standing above him, a hand extended, his expression still stone-cold.

“You need a poker face for nonverbal spells,” he says as Shigeru takes his hand. The Hufflepuff pulls him to his feet effortlessly.

“Poker?” Shigeru asks, the word foreign.

“Nevermind,” Kyoutani mutters, already turning around. “You better defend yourself, this time.”

“Trust me, I will,” Shigeru says, the fire in the pit of his stomach rekindled as he sinks into a dueling stance.

* * *

 

The next time Shigeru’s in the library, he’s looking for a Herbology textbook to research the plants Oikawa wants him to collect when he spots the Hufflepuff. He has one small book in his hands, its leather binding coming undone from time and disuse, but Shigeru can still catch the engraving: “Tales of Beedle the Bard.” Why he would be reading a children’s book is _beyond him_ , but he catches the small smile on Kyoutani’s lips.

Shigeru doesn’t know how long he’s been staring, but the Hufflepuff turns to him and his eyes widen. He lifts his hand in a wave before Shigeru hurries away, renewing his efforts to find the damned book and get out of there without having to look at the stupid Hufflepuff again.

* * *

 

This time, it’s not coincidence: Kyoutani is _everywhere_.

Well, mostly everywhere.

In Potions, Kyoutani takes the station next to him, working steadily but looking too lax all the while. In Care of Magical Creatures, he slips wordlessly next to Shigeru, following him as they trek into the Forbidden Forrest after Professor Bokuto. In Defense, they’re always paired, Kyoutani especially seeking him out so that it’s practically inescapable.

The Hufflepuff’s potions always come out better, his interactions with the various beasts they meet are always smoother, and his wandwork is always cleaner than Shigeru’s. And it pisses him the hell off. He doesn’t even know _why_ he’s hovering, for the love of Merlin, he’s just always _there_ and never trying, and Shigeru is working twice as hard for half the results and it’s like Kyoutani _wants_ him to snap.

So he does.

Shigeru’s trying to leave Potions on his own, lingering for as long as possible as he puts his stuff away methodically, but Kyoutani stays put, spinning his wand in between his fingers as he waits. Just that _alone_ is enough to set him off, Kyoutani staying around him longer after a day of showing off. He throws the rest of his stuff in his rucksack, not caring anymore as he slings it over his shoulder and stalks out of the laboratory.

Not surprisingly, Kyoutani follows him. He can hear his footsteps echoing after his own down the dungeon hallways. Shigeru stops walking. Kyoutani stops beside him, and Shigeru’s eyes are squeezed closed in frustration but he doesn’t need to see to know that the Hufflepuff is giving him a quizzical look.

“Yahaba…?”

“ _What the fuck is your problem?!_ ” Shigeru yells, rounding on him so viciously that Kyoutani takes a step back.

“You want the list?” Kyoutani retorts, making light of it even though his voice has its usual rough grumble. The remark has Shigeru lashing out, his hand moving before he knows it, grabbing the collar of Kyoutani’s uniform and pushing him so that he collides roughly with the marble walls.

“Why do you _fucking insist_ on being around me all the time?” Shigeru yells, leaning in close, seeing the way the Hufflepuff’s eyes crinkle in confusion. “Does it make you _happy_ , showing off, letting everyone know you’re better than me without even trying? Are you that _twisted_ that you like seeing me work my _ass off_ only to not be _nearly_ as good as you?!”

“I don’t know what the hell you’re talkin—”

“ _Don’t fuckin’ lie to me_!” Shigeru seethes.

“I thought we were _friends_ ,” Kyoutani spits back, moving his head in one quick motion so that his forehead collides harshly with Shigeru’s, stunning him just as much as his words do. “Leave it to a Slytherin to not look past their nose at anything,” he says, turning on his heel and disappearing down the dungeon hallways before Yahaba can even recover from the blow to his head or his pride.

* * *

 

“Friends?” Shigeru groans, the word foreign on his tongue now, but circling so frantically in his head that he can’t help but say it again.

“It’s not that wild of a concept, Yahaba,” Professor Oikawa says, his head held high as he moves a pallet of shrivelfigs in front of Shigeru. “If you’re going to whine, then you’re going to prune, and that’s just that,” Oikawa says. Shigeru nods, pulling on a pair of gloves before taking a pair of scissors and cutting away at the dead leaves around the shrivelfigs.

There’s complete silence as Shigeru prunes and Oikawa watches, but after a while, it’s broken.

“So, what on _earth_ made you believe Kyoutani was your rival?” Oikawa asks, his voice incredulous, like he just couldn’t understand it. Shigeru wilts, slumping forward onto the table in front of him and hiding his face in his arms.

“I thought he was showing off!” Shigeru whines, his voice muffled, but it’s not like it matters. “He was around all the time, and doing better than me, so I thought he was doing it on purpose just to piss me off!”

“Did you ever talk to him?” Oikawa asks, and Shigeru feels his gaze burning holes through his jumper.

“No…”

“Then why did you assume that?”

“What was I supposed to think?!” He sits up, voice hysterical and he knows it, as he faces Oikawa. “He wasn’t even _trying_ , and he was still better than me! I try so hard and I _still_ can’t measure up!”

“Kyoutani is, well,” Oikawa says, thinking for a second, “he has an incredible amount of magical intelligence. I’m sure his ‘showing off’ was merely him doing whatever your classes instruct him to do.”

“I know that _now_ ,” Yahaba mutters.

“You know you _must_ say sorry to him, right?” Oikawa prompts, clapping him on his shoulder and shaking him, just slightly.

“Yeah,” Yahaba pouts.

“Good. You found the descriptions of all the plants I asked you to look up?”

“Yes?”

“Go look for them.”

“L-look for them?”

“A majority should be in the Forbidden Forest, yes.”

“The Forest?!”

“There’s still several hours of daylight, you’ll be alright.”

“B-but—”

“Please, Yahaba?”

“Yes, Professor…”

**. . .**

The Forest gives off a vibe that Shigeru isn’t completely okay with. Sure, it’s _forbidden_ for a reason, but the entirety of the Forest is deathly silent, leaving him waiting for a sound through the trees that never comes. He knows the plants and what they look like by heart, but the Forest is so vast, if Shigeru gets caught up in looking for them, he’ll be lost in no time.

He’s not deep into the Forest when he comes across a clearing, and he sees a flicker of movement in the space. Shigeru ducks, hiding himself behind the nearest oak, before peeking out and taking a second look.

It’s… Kyoutani? His hands are splayed in the air oddly, moving with a specific rhythm that Yahaba just… can’t understand. All at once, his stomach feels like lead and his heart is constricting in his chest. He knows he has to do this, but it hurts like hell to even think about it.

“Kyoutani?” he calls, the name slipping from his lips easily as he steps out from behind his hiding spot and into the clearing. The gasp the Hufflepuff sucks in is audible, his hands falling to his sides immediately. His eyes narrow as Shigeru walks closer to him.

“What are you doing here?” Kyoutani says, voice sour as he glares at him. The expression hurts Shigeru more than he expected it to.

“What were you doing?” he decides to ask, backing out from the apology for now. He tries to be light, questioning, _friendly_ , but he doesn’t know if he pulled it off just right. Kyoutani looks at him weirdly.

“You mean…” Kyoutani starts slowly, his eyes darting to where his hands were in the air seconds earlier, “you can’t see them?”

“ _Them_?” Shigeru prompts, a little stunned. Kyoutani’s shoulders droop.

“Better you can’t, anyhow,” he mutters, the words barely floating to Shigeru’s ears. “The thestrals.”

“Thes… thestrals…” Shigeru repeats, taking it all in. “I’m sorry. Who did you—?”

“My grandmother. I was there when she died of cancer.”

“Cancer?” The word rolled off Shigeru’s tongue like it was misplaced. “An astronomical sign can’t…”

“It’s a Muggle disease,” Kyoutani says, cutting him off as his fists clench. “Muggle Studies doesn’t do jack-shit for anyone here. It’s _worthless_.”

“I think it’s interesting,” Yahaba admits quietly.

“Just don’t go asking me what a rubber duck is meant for,” Kyoutani spits, his hands going back in the air, cradling something, and Shigeru thinks he’s holding the thestral’s snout. “What are you doing here?” Kyoutani repeats, demanding an answer this time, and Shigeru can’t deny him that.

“Oikawa sent me to find some plants but I found you and…” Shigeru admits, his words trailing off at the last second. His stomach feels like it’s turning itself inside-out, and he knows he has to say it soon before the tension inside himself snaps. “And I have to apologize. For everything. I didn’t know what I was thinking and I just…” He can’t look up, not now, and he’s rooted to the spot like he had Devil’s Snare wrapped around his ankles. The silence spans between them like a sea, and it’s almost _deafening_.

“You ever touched somethin’ you can’t see?” Kyoutani asks, and Shigeru looks up, confused.

“What.”

“They’re crowdin’ you,” Kyoutani says, gesturing at him vaguely. “They usually like tears.”

“I’m not _crying_!”

“Answer my question.”

“No?”

“You want to?”

“You’re freaking me out, apology redacted,” Shigeru says, taking a step back and hoping the Hufflepuff knows his threat is empty. Kyoutani huffs and holds out his hand expectantly.

It takes Shigeru a second to realize that this is more than a random stunt, that this hand was more than an offer, it was _forgiveness_ , and relief washes over him so suddenly that it makes his knees weak. He takes Kyoutani’s hand without second-guessing.

“You have to relax,” Kyoutani says quietly, and Shigeru lets out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. The Hufflepuff tugs him forward, setting Shigeru in front of him, and shifts from holding his hand to his wrist, maneuvering him so that his palm was outstretched and held at eye level.

Kyoutani’s other hand loops around his back, settling on his shoulder just as Shigeru’s hand touches something leathery and _not there_.

“ _Whoa_ ,” Shigeru breathes, trailing his fingers across the invisible beast. Kyoutani’s hand falls from his wrist but that doesn’t matter because it’s _odd_ but its also fascinating, the way he can feel something other than the emptiness he sees in front of him, the way he can clearly feel the leathered skin and stark bones underneath. He wishes he could actually see the thestrals too.

Kyoutani’s touch slips away from his shoulder, and Shigeru turns to question him when something large bumps into his chest, sending him stumbling backwards into the other boy.

“They got a little excited,” Kyoutani says, steadying him at his shoulders before moving away. Shigeru lets out a shaky breath before reaching his hands out again. Kyoutani directs his hands until he’s holding the thestral’s snout, mirroring Kyoutani’s position minutes prior. They’re skin and bones with thin cords of muscle in between and it’s completely insane to touch something he can’t see, but it’s tethering, in a way.

“Why are _you_ out here, anyways?” Yahaba asks, the thought slipping out of his lips before he can check it.

“Professor Bokuto can’t see them,” Kyoutani says, patting at what Shigeru assumes is the thestral’s back before reaching towards something over his shoulder, probably another thestral. Shigeru can feel another one of the beasts nudging the small of his back. “The herd hasn’t been doing well lately, so he asked me if I would help take care of them from time to time.”

“That’s… really considerate of you,” Shigeru says, not being able to help how soft his voice gets.

“You still think I’m trying to one-up you?” Kyoutani quips.

“No!” Shigeru says, cheeks flushing at the accusation. “I already said sorry! I _am_ sorry!”

“Take a _joke_ ,” Kyoutani chokes out, and it takes a second for Shigeru to realize he’s laughing at him. Something bubbles in his chest.

They stay in the clearing with the thestrals for a while, talking about nothing but their words filling the space just for the sake of it, until the sun starts slipping out of the sky, leaving a blur of bright colors in its wake.

Shigeru never got the plants Oikawa asked of him, but he guesses he wasn’t _truly_ sent to the Forest to get them, after all.

* * *

 

Things… _change_ after that. It might just be because Shigeru isn’t unnecessarily angry every time he sees Kyoutani, and the thought that it could have been like this the whole time makes him feel like a dumbass. But it’s _nice_ having Kyoutani by his side in the classes they share, almost a little _too_ nice, because sometimes he ends up staring as Kyoutani’s mincing an ingredient or jotting down notes in practical lessons. And sometimes he’s caught and the smile Kyoutani gives him, knowing and embarrassed and pleased all at the same time, makes his cheeks burn but it’s worth it all the same.

They’ve also taken to studying in the library together, and it’s during one of those afternoons when Kyoutani checks the time and _jerks_ , suddenly shoving all his stuff into his backpack.

“What’s wrong?” Shigeru asks, looking up from his Potions text.

“Late for practice,” Kyoutani says, the words jumbling together as he zips up his bag.

“Practice?” Shigeru questions, before the conversation he overheard all that time ago runs through his mind again. “Oh, Quidditch?”

“Yeah, there’s a match tomorrow,” Kyoutani says, looping his arms through his backpack straps and securing it over his shoulders. “You should go.”

“Maybe,” Shigeru mutters, shrugging, even though it feels like he doesn’t really have a choice in the matter. He _knows_ he’ll be in those stands tomorrow. “What position do you play?”

“Find out,” Kyoutani says, giving a small wave before dashing out of the library.

* * *

 

The next morning, Shigeru finds himself caught in the crowds as they make their way en masse to the Quidditch pitch. It’s Hufflepuff versus Gryffindor, and everyone is painted in different shades of yellow and crimson. Shigeru feels out of place in his jeans and Slytherin robes.

They file into the stands, Houses sitting with Houses, the chattering almost ear-splitting until Bokuto walks onto the pitch.

“ _Hey hey hey_ , _everyone!_ How’s it goin’?” Professor Bokuto says, his wand at his neck as his voice booms around them. The crowd screams. “Good! But save that energy for the match! These guys and gals are gonna give you all they got! Now, captains! On the pitch, please!”

Two figures walk from opposites sides of the pitch and meet in the middle, and even though Shigeru is all the way up in the stands, he can feel the tension coming off them in waves.

“Now I want a good, clean match, alright, you too?” Bokuto says, wagging a finger between them. The captains shake hands. “ _Alright!_ Players, take your positions!” The rest of the teams trot out onto the field, yellow and red robes billowing in their wake, and Shigeru can’t help but lean forward, trying to pick out which one Kyoutani is. He can’t figure it out.

“On your mark!” Bokuto yells, Summoning the Quaffle from the sidelines and catching it deftly. “Get set! Go!” The Quaffle gets pitched into the air, going higher than Shigeru thought it was humanly possible to throw, but the players are vaulting in the air before Shigeru can focus, and the commentator’s screeching echoes throughout the stands.

_Gryffindor is in possession…_

Shigeru doesn’t care. He’s scanning the skies for Kyoutani. He checks the Beaters and then follows the Chasers as they dart across the field, looping around and through each other, pulling off stunts that should buck them off their brooms but _don’t_. It’s impressive, all the same.

He’s so lost in trying to find him that he nearly misses the sound of his name being called.

“ _Yahaba_!” Shigeru panics, flailing as he looks around the stands, looking for the voice that called him, but it’s so loud he can’t tell who did it. “Yahaba, up here!” the voice shouts again and, confused, Shigeru tilts his head upwards.

Sitting atop his broom almost leisurely, with an airy smirk on his face, is Kyoutani.

“Glad you made it!” he shouts, looping in a circle overhead.

“What are you doing?!” Shigeru yells back, nearly standing in his shock, but he stays seated. “Shouldn’t you be out there?”

“Not yet, I don’t,” Kyoutani says, self-confident, his eyes darting out to the pitch. “Gotta go,” he announces, darting off in a blur of bright yellow. Shigeru thinks, dazedly, that Kyoutani’s hair matches his Quidditch robes and it looks _good_.

_Looks like Gryffindor’s Seeker has spotted the Snitch! Will this be an early match?_

Shigeru watches as a lone Gryffindor darts along the perimeter of the pitch, hand outstretched towards something _just_ out of reach… but then Kyoutani, in a burst of speed and a blur of yellow, snaps in front of the Gryffindor, nearly colliding and making the red-clad Seeker skid to a halt. The Snitch, presumably, gets lost in the scuffle.

Shigeru can _swear_ he can hear Kyoutani’s laughter from his place in the stands.

Quidditch is dramatic, Shigeru will give the sport that much. But the Hufflepuffs make short work of Gryffindor, scoring point after point as they outsmart the Keeper. There’s a couple Snitch scares in between, with the Gryffindor Seeker desperately trying to catch it, but every time Kyoutani discourages him. It’s almost laughable, but it’s not over yet. The tension is still in the air, the crowds yelling encouragements and insults at the players, and Shigeru finds himself shouting right along with them.

It’s not over, not until there’s an unreasonably loud whistle from the pitch, and almost immediately after, Kyoutani has the Snitch in his fist held high over his head.

If the excitement was unbearable before, the screams of victory are _ear-shattering_.

The Hufflepuff team dominates the pitch, finally on the ground as they celebrate, their Housemates rushing towards them from the stands. Shigeru can’t explain it, but just as the excitement starts to die, he finds himself wandering onto the pitch, too.

He’s standing there, on the edge of the carefully-kept grass, for around thirty seconds before his name is called, breathlessly, over the clamor. He barely has time to collect himself before Kyoutani slams into him, strong arms wrapping about his torso.

“You won,” Shigeru says, not able to reciprocate the hug but knowing he definitely wants to. Kyoutani lets him go, holding Shigeru at arm’s length before pulling his right hand close to his chest and opening his fist.

The Snitch glitters in his hand, it’s delicate golden wings unfurling before deciding that it wants to dart off again. Kyoutani secures it deftly before it can go far.

“We won,” Kyoutani says again, his smile so wide Shigeru thinks it has to hurt. “I’m glad you came,” he says, almost like an afterthought, his voice tender but also a little hoarse from yelling. Shigeru feels his face heat up.

“Me too. You were amazing out there,” Shigeru says, smiling back. Something about Kyoutani’s expression slackens. “W-what…?” Shigeru starts to ask, confused, before the Hufflepuff team starts shouting for Kyoutani. The Seeker’s golden eyes never leave his face. “Uhm, I think they’re…” he starts to say, but he’s cut off when Kyoutani’s hand, that was resting on his shoulder, slips to his cheek and leads him forward as Kyoutani presses his lips to Shigeru’s. The touch lingers for a second, before Kyoutani backs down and starts to head back to his team.

“See you later!” Kyoutani shouts over his shoulder, his entire face as red as Shigeru’s, and Shigeru’s glad to know that the statement is true.

He has a _lot_ to say to him next time.

**Author's Note:**

> thank you so much for reading!! please leave a comment and tell me what you think, or shoot me a message/ask at my tumblr!  
> Fun Fact: with this fic, i commemorate an entire six years of writing!! thank you for supporting me!  
> whatever you're going through, you'll get through it! you're never alone!  
> love you!!  
> -HB


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